


Extraordinary Proof

by MellytheHun



Series: Kylux Week 2016 [2]
Category: Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens (2015)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Comedy, Fluff, Humor, Jealousy, Kylux Week 2016, M/M, Pre-Slash, Tumblr Prompt, just tooth-rotting fluff tbh, tumblr event
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-06
Updated: 2016-12-06
Packaged: 2018-09-06 21:15:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,230
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8769598
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MellytheHun/pseuds/MellytheHun
Summary: Kylux Week 2016 Day 2 (December 6th): Millicent the Cat





	

Phasma’s eyes drift blandly back and forth between Hux and Ren as they argue over the merits of the Force. To no one’s surprise, Hux had only offending opinions to state on the case and, predictably, Ren lashed out because he is incapable of not taking all things personally. 

The argument has been going on for nearly half an hour and Phasma is developing a headache from the irritation.

“It’s about passion and honor, not –“

“There is nothing honorable about surrendering logic to the whimsy of passion!”

“ _Whimsy_!?” Ren shouts back incredulously – Phasma has to duck her head to keep from laughing at his outrage.

Words like that fit alright in Hux’s mouth with his eloquence and upper-class accent, but when Ren repeats them, it’s a bit absurd. It’s difficult to take him seriously as well, when his voice is so deep and furious and the words he’s using are not quite so.

“ _Passion_ ,” Hux starts with a sneer of distaste, “is nothing but a word you use to rationalize being a _drama queen_.”

With that, Hux turns to leave the room and Ren makes a rude gesture at his back. Phasma gives a small laugh and then Ren looks at her, saying, “when it comes to drama, he doesn’t have a lot of room to talk. Not that he’d know what a passion was if it bit him in the ass.”

Phasma laughs again and replies, “of course the General is passionate; he just would never call it that. Too romantic a word for him.”

“To make an extraordinary claim, you should have extraordinary proof,” Ren says back to her, very clearly unable to think of Hux as ‘romantic,’ or ‘passionate,’ about anything.

She raises her brows and with a sigh, she stands up, readying herself to leave and start the rest of her work cycle.

“Well, clearly you don’t know about Millicent.” 

“Millicent?”

Phasma looks over her shoulder at him before putting her helmet on and tells him, “yes. His one true love.”

Kylo’s heart sinks and his expression does too – Phasma leaves him alone with that thought, echoing around his head with nowhere to go, nowhere to settle that makes any sense. Love, passion, romance – none of that fits into the schema of General Hux Kylo has built in his head up until that moment.

He decides he must know more and a personally driven investigation is in full swing before the lunch hour is up.

The first person Kylo questions is Mitaka – Kylo reasons that with all the time he spends working alongside Hux, he must know _something_ about Millicent. And Kylo’s assumption on the mark, which assuages him as much as it irritates him further.

When he brings the name up, Mitaka looks thoughtfully at the ceiling and says innocently, “oh, yes, Millicent. Haven’t seen her for a while. Not one of the General’s better kept secrets, but he can hardly help himself. He’s aglow at just the mention of her.”

**_Aglow_ ** _? The **General**?_

“The Captain said she was Hux’s one true love,” Kylo comments, trying to gauge Mitaka’s reaction to the word ‘love,’ being tossed in with ‘Hux,’ and keep his own inflamed curiosity at bay.

“She most certainly is,” Mitaka responds readily, “I would bet all my credits and more that General Hux would lay down his very life to keep her safe.”

Kylo pales, feeling a bit nauseous and maddened.

 _Who could this woman be?_ Kylo wonders, feeling lost and hating the feeling of feeling lost, _What type of woman could ensnare the heart of a man like Hux so completely?_

“Keeping her safe – is that why he doesn’t speak of her?”

“I’d have to imagine,” Mitaka replies conversationally, “There are plenty of people that would love to find his most tender bruise and push on it. She’s the one chink in his armor, so to speak. I’ve never met her myself, but I’ve heard she’s beautiful and very attached to the General and he to her.”

Just as Kylo is about to ask more questions, Mitaka gets a call over the comm and he leaves with an apologetic bow.

Kylo is far from satisfied with his findings.

Interrogating the staff churns out conflicting stories with immense, varying degrees of nauseatingly sweet sentiment and all the while, Kylo’s intrigue and rage mounts and mounts.

_“I’ve heard she’s got red hair just like him and bright green eyes!”_

_“I’ve seen the General hold her before – he’s real gentle with her.”_

_“Oh, she is precious! So sweet! Very quiet and not so sociable, but I couldn’t imagine a better fit for the General! They’re meant for each other, those two.”_

_“I’ve heard that General Hux killed an Officer once for making an unkind comment about her weight. He doesn’t tolerate any mistreatment or poor word about her.”_

_“The General treats her like a princess – I wish someone could love me as much as he loves Millicent. He really does adore her – you can see it in his eyes when he looks at her. It’s so sweet.”_

_“It does sound like a peasant’s name, doesn’t it? Well, I certainly can’t tell you where she got her name or why, but Millicent is a delight. I’ve only met her twice and that second time, she was asleep in the General’s arms! Right in his office! They’re so dear together.”_

_“She keeps his secrets and inspires him constantly – I’m sure the General could never find a better companion. If there’s any reason the General fights courageously, it’s for her benefit.”_

Several standard weeks pass with much of the same…

_“You’ve not met her? Oh, he must be keeping her from you! She’s got a fragile heart and your dark uniform alone might scare her.”_

_“General Hux would do anything for her. Anything.”_

_“She’s not really the playful type, but then again, neither is the General, aye? They match well.”_

_“Good pair those two! It’s a bit humbling to see them together.”_

_“I don’t know much – just know that Hux brings her exotic gifts from planet-side missions and dotes on her.”_

_“I’ve heard that the General braved an active No Man’s Land to retrieve her from enemy lines once. There’s nothing he wouldn’t do for her.”_

_“She’s the apple of his eye.”_

_“I’ve truly never seen such unadulterated fondness – you can practically see the hearts in his eyes when she’s about.”_

_“He’s instantly distracted the moment she enters a room – can’t take his eyes off her and he really loses his temper if anyone lays a hand on her.”_

_“Oh, he can’t bear to share her attention! He’d bring this ship down before surrendering her to anyone in this galaxy.”_

_“A match made in Heaven.”_

_“One true love, you say? Yeah… I can see that. They suit each other. Really do. You’d never think the General’s got a bleeding heart, but Hells, does it bleed for that little’un.”_

_“Millicent and the General? Now that’s a love story for the ages, I’ll tell you that.”_

Kylo is thoroughly, deeply bewildered.

The rumors very apparently conflict with the solid, well-recorded human man Kylo knows, but the consensus is strong and undeniable. People have seen this woman – all of them admire and fear her (or rather, fear what Hux will do to them if they offend her). The reports vary in intensity, some claiming she’s just an unnecessary liability, that she clouds Hux’s judgment – others say she’s vital to Hux’s happiness and, consequentially, his focus and drive.

At the end of it all, though, all Kylo can say he’s found – truly – is that Millicent must be a goddess among mere mortals. He’s only known General Hux to be a stony, icy man with a heart like cool marble, but the witness testimony is… troubling, to say the least. There’s so much – so many people corroborating each other’s stories, so many romantic, caring descriptions being assigned to Hux that just… don’t make any _sense_.

It forces Kylo to question everything he knows about Hux – which leads him to the conclusion he must know nothing about Hux if even Hux’s subordinates knew of Millicent, but _he_ had never been enlightened. He feels cheated – that this is all so unjust and it’s that self-righteous vigor that has him standing in front of Hux’s work desk with clenched fists and a set goal.

Hux doesn’t look up from the holopad he’s working on to acknowledge Kylo, which they both know irritates Kylo to no end. The air tenses up, building with Kylo’s frustrations.

“I want to meet Millicent.”

“No.”

Shocked at first that Hux is admitting there _is_ a Millicent, Kylo recovers enough to be angry at the quick exclusion. Kylo scowls down at the crown of Hux’s head – he won’t be dismissed so easily.

“I demand to meet her, Hux.”

“ _No_ ,” Hux repeats emphatically.

“What are you hiding, precisely?” Kylo asks, furious and still with endless questions – mostly for Millicent – like what in the Hells it is she could see in General Hux that made him worthy of unconditional love, “Why can your crew know of her – even interact with her, but I am not allowed to see her? And why have you kept her a secret from me? I am co-commander of this ship and that should mean some basic level of trust between us – I _will_ meet her – even if it means storming your damn quarters myself.”

“Stars, Ren, does this have to be right now?” Hux groans, massaging one of his temples in grave annoyance, “I really don’t have the time for your…” Hux gestures vaguely in Kylo’s direction and finishes, “… _you_.”

“Stop ignoring me!” Kylo shouts, his temperature rising and teeth grinding, “I _demand_ to meet her! You _will_ show her to me!”

Hux finally puts his holopad down and stares up at Ren. His brow is furrowed in misunderstanding and, deeply befuddled, Hux asks plainly, “what in the Stars has got you so worked up over a cat?”

There are a few heavy beats of silence.

“…sorry?”

“Millicent,” Hux expounds, as if all this was so obvious, “ _Millicent_ – my _cat_. She lives in my quarters with me. Is there another Millicent associated with me that I’m not privy to?”

“…so… she is not… a human woman?”

Crossing his arms over his desk, Hux tilts his head inquisitively and replies, “no, she is not. She’s a cat I picked up during my early days in the fleet and she’s been with me ever since. You thought I was harboring a human woman in my quarters?”

“I…” _don’t know what I thought…_

With a long-suffering sigh, Hux rights himself and takes pity on Kylo, muttering, “oh, come along, you great buffoon. Stop looking so pathetic.”

Offended by the slight, but more distracted than anything else, Kylo follows Hux’s lead to the General’s quarters. When the doors slide shut behind Kylo, he watches Hux turn up a dim light and hears him murmur into the room, “Millie, dear, daddy’s home.”

If it were a laughing matter, Kylo would laugh, but everything about this entire situation is exasperating and has him feeling burnt out and wrong-footed.

When out from under Hux’s bed a ginger cat trots, everything clicks into place – Millicent is quiet, she’s got hair like Hux’s, Hux holds her and doesn’t let anyone else handle her, dotes on her, cares after her – _of course_. She’s a _pet_.

Why had Kylo been so worried?

Hux bends down to greet her and she purrs loudly under his palm. He sweeps his arm back to present Kylo and tells her, “Millie, darling, this is Ren. He is the bane of my existence and would very much like to meet you.”

Kylo scowls at the back of Hux’s head and opens his mouth to let Hux know exactly how disruptive Hux has been to his sanity, but he’s quickly distracted with Millicent approaching. 

He turns his head enough to watch Millicent round Hux’s legs to come near him. She stares up at Kylo, eyes bright and shining like jade; she studies him, clearly passing judgment – Kylo begins to agree with the rest of the crew that has met her; she and Hux _are_ a good match. She apparently deems him safe despite his dark robes and towering height and rubs against his right-side boot.

As he watches her rub against him, Kylo realizes with a terrible sense of impending doom that he cares way too much about who Hux cares about. Why was finding out Millicent was naught but a domesticated cat so relieving? What was happening to Kylo that he was so hyper-concerned with who Hux doted on?

Millicent mewls up at him and he stares down at her, unsure of how to respond. He hears Hux snicker and looks at the man crouched on the floor. He’s nearly smiling at Kylo – just a shy thing, not fully formed, but making a home there on his full lips. 

Kylo thinks idly to himself that he’d like to see Hux smile. He wonders what that looks like.

“What?” Kylo asks.

“Mm,” Hux shrugs, humming indistinctly, “She just doesn’t usually take to strangers so quickly.”

“She must deem me worthy company for you to keep, then,” Kylo mutters back without meaning to.

He feels his ears and cheeks heat up in embarrassment, but then he hears Hux laugh gently again and he replies, softly, “yes. Perhaps.” 


End file.
